7 Lessons From Election 2013

posted by Kevin Spak, Newser Staff
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3 years ago

(NEWSER) – The 2013 election is in the books, and while there weren't many surprises in this off-year affair, there's plenty to digest. Here are some bulleted thoughts to help your brain do just that:

Some polls had Terry McAuliffe ahead of Ken Cuccinelli by double digits, so his 3-point win is something of a stunner, Politico points out. Cuccinelli's assessment: "This race came down to the wire because of ObamaCare." Exit polls seem to agree with him, CNNreports; 53% opposed ObamaCare.

McAuliffe also outspent Cuccinelli by $15 million. Given the small margin of victory, expect some recriminations from the RNC, which spent just $3 million on the race, compared to $9 million in 2009.

Do Republicans still have problems with women? McAuliffe won women by the same 9-point margin that Barack Obama did, and Chris Cillizza at the Washington Post points out that he won unmarried women by a whopping 40 points. But Chris Christie actually won 57% of women en route to his landslide win.

Of course, Christie won as "the un-Republican," in Cillizza's words. The results suggest that the GOP "would be much better served nominating a Chris Christie conservative than a Ken Cuccinelli or Ted Cruz conservative" in 2016.